Softening apparatus



M. BROOK.

SOFTEN |NG APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED MAY 4, 191B- 1 ,396, 1 60.Patented Nov. 8, 1921.

PATENT OFFICE.

stairs!) STATES v ITED SHOE NERY CORPORATION, OF PATERSON, NEW JERSEY, ACORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SOFTENIN G APPARATUS.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MATTHIAS BROOK, a. citizen of the United States,residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts,have invented certain Improvements in Softening Apparatus, of which thefollowing description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, isa specification, like reference characters on the drawings indicatinglike parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to softening apparatus and is herein disclosed asembodied in an apparatus especially designed for softening the heelportions of shoe upper materials preparatory to a molding or lastingoperation.

I contemplate the application of a softening agent to the inside of therear part of a shoe upper, and an important feature of the inventionconsists in a treating chamber adapted to apply a softening agent tothis part of a shoe.

More particularly, a further feature of the invention consists in achamber arranged to receive the counter portion'only of a shoe upper. Inthe apparatus shown, the treating chamber has a U-shaped slot adapted toreceive the margin of the counter portion of the shoe upper.

It is of great importance in the softening operation to treat only suchparts of the shoe as need it and to protect the other parts from beingmoistened or otherwise softened. Furthermore, it is desirable in somecases to perform the operation of molding the counter portion of a shoeupper before the last hasbeen inserted and since the softening treatmentprecedes the molding operation there is not, at the time ofadministering the softening treatment, any last to protect from thetreating agent those parts of the upper which should not be subjected toit.

ccordingly, another feature of the invention consists in a novelstructure arranged to support a shoe upper for treatment and adapted toshield those parts of the upper that should not be subjected to theaction of the treating agent. In the apparatus shown this supportingstructure is arranged when in one position, to transform and to restrictthe shoe receiving aperture of the treating chamber, and to be movableto another oper- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 8, 1921. 1918. Serial No. 232,526.

ative position in which the aperture.

In the following specification and claims have used the term upper todenote the assembled upper materials, including, if de sired, the boxtoe and counter stiffener.

it completely closes binations of parts will be better understood fromthe following description of a preferred embodiment thereof selected forpurings in which:

Figure l is a front elevation, and

Fig. 2 is a sectional detail.

The illustrated machine comprises a hollow standard 10 provided with aninlet pipe 12 and an outlet pipe 14. The standard will preferably bekept full of water as far as the pipe lat, and steam will be blown inunder the water surface through the pipe 12, being controlled by asuitable valve, not shown, and will then bubble up through the water 16,being delivered at the surface at substantially 212 F. and fifteenpounds (atmospheric) pressure.

The top of the column is provided with a flat inclined chest or treatingdevice having a chamber 18 in communication with the hollow interior ofthe column 10 and having (in the example shown) two openings 20. Neareach opening a pivot 22 is provided, on which is mounted a cover 241-.This cover is oblong in shape with one end wider than the other. Thewider end 26 is sufficiently ample to close the opening 20 entirely whenplaced across it, but the narrow end 28, when turned up over the opening20, covers its central portion only and leaves a channel 80 of invertedU shape.

The shoe 'upper, having been assembled and sewed and preferablycontaining an unmolded counter stiffener, is placed in the apparatus asindicated in Fig. 2 with the cover-end 28 projecting into the upperthrough the bottom and supporting it around the top of the counterportion while the end 26 supports its toe. The treating device and thecover-plates 24 are inclined to facilitate the insertion and support ofthe shoe. Thesteam rises, comes in contact with the inside and outsideof the counter portion of the shoe, and is kept from rising means forsupplying within the forepart of the shoe by the coverend 28. Ihecounter portion of the shoe, after being softened, may be then moldedand lasted.

\Vhen an aperture is not in use its cover 2t may be inverted, as shownin dotted lines in Fig. 1, in order to close the aperture and confinethe steam or vapor and maintain its temperature in the chamber 18.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States is 1. In an apparatus of theclass described, means for supplying a softening agent to a treatinglocality, and means constructed and arranged to support an unlastedshoe-upper off the last so that the interior of the counter-portion willbe presented to the softening agent.

2. In an apparatus of the class described,

means for supplying a softening agent at" a treating locality, andwork-supporting means constructed and arranged to maintain thecounter-portion of a shoe-upper in distended form without a last and inthe treating locality.

3. In an apparatus of the class described, a softening agent at atreating locality, and a work-supporting member constructed and arrangedto engage one end of an unlasted shoe-upper off the last so as tosupport that end and to extend into the upper so as to keep the otherend distended and in the treating locality and so as to prevent-thesoftening agent from reaching the first said end.

4t. In anapparatus of the class described, means for supplying asoftening agent at a treating locality, and a guard constructed andarranged to conform to the interior of the counter-portion of anunlasted shoe-upper off the last and to exclude the treating agent fromthe forepart of the upper while admitting it into the counter-portion.

5. In an apparatus of the class described, a treating device havingmeans constructed and arranged to project into the counter portion of ashoe upper to maintainthe latter distended and to protect portions ofthe upper other than the counter portion from the treating agent.

6. In an apparatus of the class described, a treating device having anopening formed and arranged to receive the counter portion of a shoeupper for treatment, a portion of prevent agent is prevented fromgaining access to the forepart of the upper..

8. In an apparatus of the class described, a treating device having atreating chamber and acurved slot formed and arranged to 7 receive thecounter portion of an upper, the

part forming the inner edge of the slot being adapted to occupy thecounter portion.

- 9. In an apparatus of the class described, a treating device having atreating chamber, one or more slots each formed and arranged to receivethe distended counter-portion of a shoe-upper, the chamber being closedto the escape of the treating agent eX- cepting the escape through saidslot or slots. 10. In an apparatus of the class described, atreatingdevice having a chamber formed with an opening for receiving a portionof a shoe upper for treatment, and a movable closure for the openingconstructed and arranged to uncover the opening and to support the shoeupper in position for treatment.

11. In an apparatus of the class described, a treating device having anaperture to receive a portion of a shoeupper for treatment, a closurefor the aperture having two operative positions in one of which it shutsthe aperture completely and in the other of which it leaves a portion ofthe aperture uncovered to receive a shoe upper.

12. In an apparatus of the character described, a treating device havingan opening for the egress of a treating agent with which to treat aportion. of a shoe upper, and a member movably connected to said device,

I said member being formed and arranged to close said opemng when in oneposition and.

to uncover a portion of the opening and to support the work in positionfor treatment when in another position,

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

' MATTHIAS BROOK.

